Uni Watch Book Club: Vanishing Alleys

Reader Scott Little, who co-owns Triangle Bowl in Longview, Washington, sent me a really great Xmas present: a copy of a new book called Vanishing Alleys, by photographer Kevin Hong.

The book features scores of photos of old-school bowling alleys (no auto-scoring at these places, kids) scattered around Washingon, Oregon, and Nevada. Here’s a sampling, beginning with an Elks Lodge in Oregon that has a few lanes in the basement, complete with stadium seating (for all of these, you can click to enlarge):

See that green paint in the Elks Lodge photo? I really like how they used that same color for the gutters (the lanes on the right have black kiddie bumpers obscuring the green paint, unfortunately):

These next two photos show two very different styles of pinsetters, both of which I find extremely appealing:

Ever bowl at a place with only two lanes? I’ve done it a handful of times. It’s fun but also weirdly claustrophobic. This photo provides a good sense of what it’s like:

The perfect number of lanes, I’ve always believed, is six. Feels friendly, sociable, just big enough to feel legit without feeling overwhelming, as nicely illustrated in this photo:

Here’s something I’ve never seen before: six masking panels in six different colors:

Holy shit do I love it when the ball returns have these old Brunswick badges on them:

I really like how these lane numbers are freestanding, instead of being flush against the masking panel:

Uni Watch News Ticker: Word I’m hearing through the grapevine is that last week’s ESPN column on MLB’s new BP caps generated so much controversy and backlash against the Braves’ “screaming Indian” design that the team may end up switching to another cap logo. If that happens, expect MLB to issue lots of revisionist-history talking points about how the Indian design was just “one option we were exploring” and that it was “in development but never finalized” and that the Braves simply “opted to go in another direction” or some such. But take it from me: That design was (and, for now, still is) good to go. As of today, it’s listed in the MLB Style Guide. If the Braves ultimately abandon it, it’ll be because they responded to the backlash, period. Which, of course, is precisely what they should do. Here’s hoping. … Adidas has unveiled the uniforms for the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, which is a high school all-star game. … The Adirondak Phantoms wore tuxedo-style jerseys the other day, which you can see at the bottom of this page (from Paul Saunders). … Very cool look at the National League Central Division teams reimagined as soccer clubs (from Phillip Foose). … Boston Public Library has just posted a bunch of old hockey pics, including this and this. And check out all the great jacket variations in this one (from Bruce Menard). … Texas A&M’s police escorts for the Cotton Bowl will be wearing this motorcycle helmet design (from Andy McNeel). … Buried in this article about Boise State staying in the Mountain West Conference is the following: “The Mountain West will not regulate uniform colors and specifically will permit Boise State to wear blue uniforms at home” (from Chris Newbury). … Here’s an interview with Adidas’s main MLS kit designer (from Tim O’Malley). … Sad news out of Patriots camp, where equipment manager Don Brocher — the longest-tenured employee in the team’s history — has passed away (from John Sheehan). … Florida State was playing in the Credit Card Bowl, so why was one of their players wearing an Insurance Bowl cap the other night? (From Robert Lim.) … Speaking of the Insurance Bowl, Florida went with blue jerseys over orange pants last night. “I believe this marks the first time that Florida has worn that combination since they lost at home to Florida St. in 1999, which I believe was the only time they went with that combination during Steve Spurrier’s tenure,” says Rich Harman. … New logo set for the K-League — that’s Korean soccer. Further details here (from Dan Kurtz). … A few days ago I asked why Longhorns WR Jaxon Shipley was wearing a ribbon decal in the Gas Station Bowl. The answer comes from Lance Fleming: “Talked to his parents and they said it’s his way of supporting cancer awareness. He chose a purple ribbon to show his support for awareness of all types of cancer.” … Please join me in sending a big birthday shout-out to Uni Watch bench coach L.I. Phil Hecken. Hope you get everything you wish for when you blow out the candles, buddy!

241 comments to Uni Watch Book Club: Vanishing Alleys

DenverGregg|
January 3, 2013 at 7:40 am |

While you might think that small bowling alleys are mainly a vintage phenomenon, a new joint in Denver that opened since Halloween (no, not that kind of joint) has eight lanes split into two sections, a little two-lane VIP room and a six lane main room. It’s a fun spot, if overly spendy for food and drink.

Yeah, we have a few new places like that in NYC, too. Unfortunately, they’re presenting bowling as a lifestyle trapping. But I’m not interested in bowling as lifestyle; I’m interested in bowling as LIFE. Which is why I happily drive to New Jersey to go bowling at my favorite old bar-with-four-lanes.

Joe "Fatty McCee" Johnson|
January 3, 2013 at 8:54 am |

Bowling is for choads.

Jason L|
January 3, 2013 at 10:04 am |

A lot of those “Nightclubs with Bowling Lanes” aren’t even using traditional pinsetters: the pins are tethered with a loose, transparent plastic cable. Similar to Candlepin, they just pull the pins back to vertical. While that’s faster and quieter, it really loses something for me.

To say nothing of how the speed encourages some drunk douche to stay up there on the lane between rolls, which results in them ignoring lane courtesy the first time they bowl at a real house. *grumbles*

Dumb Guy|
January 3, 2013 at 11:29 am |

Don’t EVEN get me started on lane courtesy know-nothings!!

James A|
January 3, 2013 at 12:12 pm |

I was just recently talking with some friends about this same issue. I just don’t get making bowling high-end including pricer drink and food options. It simply seems like an excuse to squeeze more money out of you from both what you pay per game to what you consume. I still remember the lanes I bowled at in a league for two years in high school and how it had the best tasting Coca-Cola I’ve ever had (This coming from a Pepsi guy). They closed it down and opened a newer, bigger one further away. I miss the old lanes and throwing down crinkle-cut fries and a Coke on a Saturday morning.

Dumb Guy|
January 3, 2013 at 8:07 am |

Where are parents going to set up the playpen for the kids? A good buddy of mine decribes himself as a “bowling alley baby”. Meaning, his parents were ALWAYS bowling, so he was in the playpen at the lanes while they bowled. THAT is bowling as LIFE.

No martinis. No bumper bowling. No cosmic bowling.

Cort|
January 3, 2013 at 8:11 am |

In my hometown, North Tonawanda, NY, we had 4 alleys within a ten minute bike ride of our house: Parkside Lanes, Deluxe Lanes, Gratwick Lanes, and Rojek Lanes (owned and operated by Stan Rojek, the first guy from NT to play in the major leagues). They were all small establishments – 6 to 10 lanes. They were packed nearly every night of the week.

Today, they’re all gone. And the community is pretty much gone with them.

Jet|
January 3, 2013 at 12:14 pm |

There used to be a 6-lane alley in my hometown of Bellmore, NY growing up in the 60’s. I think it hung around until the 90’s before closing but it was always a unique experience as opposed to going to the 30-lane alleys in Bellmore or neighboring Merrick.

Great photographs, Paul, great feature. And couldn’t agree more on the essential kegler requirement of beauty on a low budget.

glen|
January 3, 2013 at 6:50 pm |

Tonawanda Lumberjacks!!!!!

AllieBrandt|
January 3, 2013 at 9:20 pm |

That’s NT Lumberjacks, lest they be confused with the Tonawanda Warriors. Growing up in Western New York I never knew it was uncommon to have multiple allies in small towns, until I moved away.

Go Lockport Lions

Mutts|
January 5, 2013 at 4:03 pm |

Went to med school in Buffalo in the early/mid 90s. On Saturday nights my gf and I would go to Tonawanda or NT ( I don’t remember which) and bowl in the back of this bar. It had very few lanes and was dirt cheap to bowl. The bar would be full of regulars and we would have the lanes to ourselves. Don’t remember the name of the joint but we went often. It was fantastic!!!

That one with the six different colored things — isn’t that a twelve lane alley, each one is over two lanes?

Also the two-lane setup does seem claustrophobic. I imagine that’s what the bowling alley in the basement of the White House looks like.. (If it is still there, I think I remember reading that Nixon maybe had it put in.)

Yes and no. Truman didn’t bowl, but let a bowling alley be built for his staff to use. That alley was later removed from the White House during the Eisenhower administration to make room for a mimeograph office. (Ah, mimeographs: the purple aroma of nostalgia.) Three presidents later, Nixon, who did bowl, installed the current bowling alley under the north driveway. A history, with requisite sad photo of the single lane in 2008, here:

Reading that article, it appears that both Truman’s and Nixon’s lanes are still there, though as you note Truman’s was moved to the Eisenhower building across the street):

(Presidential historian Richard Norton) Smith said the president has three bowling facilities available for his use. One two-lane alley installed in the basement of the office building adjacent to the West Wing; a single-lane in the basement beneath the North Portico; and a lane at Camp David.

The “Harry S. Truman Bowling Alley” looks stately enough, but I miss the old look.

Arr Scott|
January 3, 2013 at 12:22 pm |

Yeah, the Truman lane(s) were moved to the old Executive Office Building. “Adjacent to the West Wing” is one way to describe it. “In a nearby building” would be a more accurate way to say it, since the two structures are not, in fact, adjacent. Though they do connect with tunnels. Point is, the Truman lanes are not in the White House. The Nixon lanes are.

…and that FSU player’s hat looks like a screw-up. Although it clearly says “Allstate Sugar Bowl Champs ’13” on it, the logo on the side of it doesn’t look like the Allstate logo to me, I think it’s just the Discover Orange Bowl logo portrayed in the black and gray color scheme of the hat. The Allstate logo is shaped differently, I think somebody got confused by the colors, maybe.

Sean|
January 3, 2013 at 10:54 am |

I too thought the logo on the side of the hat appeared to be the Orange Bowl logo. It’s like a Sugar Bowl front morphed with an Orange Bowl hat.

This whole Replace-Corporate-Sponsor-Name-On-Bowl-Game-Name thing has gone beyond annoying. Ignoring the ideological position behind it, the practice makes it nigh impossible for someone who isn’t particularly a fan of college football to figure out what game you’re talking about and completely distracts from any Uni-relevant content.

They’re not passive-aggressive; they’re aggressive-aggressive. I’m intentionally spotlighting and mocking the ridiculousness of the bowl system and the corporate sponsorship thereof.

I said this a few days ago and it bears repeating: With a coupla exceptions, none of the bowl identities matter. They’re just random postseason pairings of random teams at random neutral sites. The outcomes of the games have no bearing on anything. As such, my names for the games are no better or worse than the “official” names. All that really matters is that Florida and Louisville played a game last night. If they (or you) want to pretend that the game was more meaningful by giving it a name, then fine, I’ll give it a name. But it’ll be my name, not theirs.

If this bothers you for some reason, well, that’s a pity.

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 9:20 am |

well if the names have no real meaning why go through the effort of trying to come up with some “aggressive-aggressive” witty title then.

Serious question here (I swear I’m not just trying to stir it up) — which are the few exceptions which the identities do matter? Rose? Orange? And what’s the difference between those and the others?

If the people of Boise, Idaho want to have the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl and have a whole thing centered around the potato complete with a huge potato float, why shouldn’t that bowl identity matter? (Even though that’s relatively new, too, it was called the Humanitarian Bowl for a long time) The majority of them still have the traditional name and only a few have dropped the traditional name entirely (i.e. Chick-Fil-A, which purists can still think of as the Peach Bowl), and even fewer still have only ever been known by solely a corporate name (Belk Bowl, for instance, although it has a traditional name, the Queen City Bowl, even though it was never used.) The rest all still have a traditional name & identity, and to the people of that city, they do matter, don’t they?

I get what you’re saying about the name, but it’s their bowl they can call it what they want (Sugar) or sell the name to an insurance company (Allstate) and I get it that no one’s paying you to use the name Allstate so that’s fine, call it the insurance bowl.

But these games do matter and are more important than regular season college football games, they are what passes for a post-season in Div. 1-FBS football and while most other sports, college and pro, have chosen to adopt a playoff system to determine a sole champion, this sport has evolved into this sort of a half-assed post-season format where instead of only one champion, ~70 teams play one game each to determine ~35 so-called champions (with albeit still one, sometimes undisputed greatest champion) and each of these ~35 games are special, sometimes even for the teams that are playing in them.

The 35 teams that win these games can celebrate ending their season as a champion of something as inconseqeuntial as the Poulan-Weed Eater Bowl or the Advocare Northrup Grumman Military Bowl, but at least they went out winners, they went out as champions. Maybe these bowl games do matter to somebody, especially seniors playing their last game, the majority of whom will never make it to the NFL.

I’m as big a proponent for a playoff system to determine a champion as anybody, but if adopting it meant they’d totally scrap the bowl system and instead of 35 teams finishing their seasons as winners, you’d only have one winner, and all the other teams would end their season with either a loss or no post-season at all, I think you’d ruin something that is unique and special about Div 1-FBS football.

Yes, of course they can call it whatever they like. And I can call it whatever I like.

BCS Title Game notwithstanding, these games don’t matter any more (or less) than a regular season game. The winner doesn’t advance to a next round, there’s no title or championship at stake. Once upon a time, teams from certain conferences ended up in certain bowls, but that system has now largely been scrapped (and besides, teams now switch conferences almost at will). What did Louisville win last night? A game. No more, no less. They did not “go out as champions,” as you put it, because no championship was at stake. They did go out as winners, but so does any team that wins its last game of the season (even the ’62 Mets).

If you want to believe the fiction that these games have some sort of extra import, that’s your prerogative. But make no mistake — that is a fiction.

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 9:56 am |

i think this just boils down to Paul doesn’t care about college football and hates any sort of corporate sponsorship, so he’s just going to mock it

I think it actually boils down to you clinging to a certain fantasy and having a hard time coping when something threatens that fantasy.

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 10:20 am |

there’s no fantasy here. i know that the non-bcs bowls have no bearing on the outlook of the sport. still doesn’t change the fact that you’re trivializing something that you have no real interest in. like i said said before if you think the corporate naming rights are uncalled for/ unneeded then just don’t use that part of the name. it was cute the first few times, but it’s gotten to the point where it’s just stale. it’s like that guy that leaves work on New Year’s Eve telling his coworkers that he’d see them next year..

kdf|
January 3, 2013 at 10:40 am |

First off, when you say that why I come here doesn’t matter, why you come here does…I’m not sure how to get into that without making it personal…If you don’t care about the opinions and feedback of readership, then why not just make the blog a big word file you keep to yourself? You don’t have to agree with my opinions. But I was offering feedback. This place gets real preachy sometimes, and if I wanted to live in the self-appointed elite Brooklyn echo chamber I would. I think there is value to much of your analysis, but I generally find myself tuning out much of. There. Feedback submitted. You don’t have to care, but remember that publishing is a two way street. If you don’t want to deal with contrary or critical opinions, don’t publish.

Second. “If you want to believe the fiction that these games have some sort of extra import, that’s your prerogative. But make no mistake — that is a fiction.”

The above is not a fiction to the players who play the game, many, many fans who view or attend the games or to your employer at ESPN. They may not matter to you, and they don’t particularly matter to me. But to those players a special end-of-year celebration final game in a special place, and the similar feelings of fans, these things are not a fiction to them. It’s a celebration and an accomplishment.

I guess it’s just semantics of what is a champion — can only the overall champion of all of the teams competing only truly be a “champion”, or can there be different things to be champion of? If not, why not? If it means something to be a conference champion, why can’t being a bowl champion be a thing?

In this system as it is now, Louisville is the 2013 Orange Bowl Champion – for whatever that’s worth. The ’62 Mets and all other teams in all other sports that missed the playoffs, and all college football 1-FBS teams that didn’t go to a bowl, no they aren’t champions, even if they won their last regular season game. I’m talking about post-season, whether it’s a one-team take all bracket tournament or a series of bowls with multiple winners, it’s still a post-season.

In other sports 16 teams, or 12 teams, or 64 (65 or 68) teams, or however many teams may compete to determine one sole champion. But in Div-1 FBS football right now, that is not the case. 70 teams compete for 35 “championships”, one of which is the BCS Championship, whose winner is deemed to be the greatest Champion of them all.

And tonight, Oregon and Kansas State will compete to determine the 2013 Fiesta Bowl Champion. The winner won’t be the overall champion of Div-1 FBS football, but they will be Fiesta Bowl Champion. That’s just the system we have right now. How is that fiction? It is what it is.

If I put $10 up and offered the Dallas Cowboys and the Chicago Bears to play for it since they missed the NFL playoffs and called it the Rob H. Championship, it would still be a championship, regardless of how meaningless it would be.

I’m not even sure if that helps my argument or yours more, but a championship is a championship, even if it’s not the ultimate championship. Look at English Soccer, don’t they have both the FA Cup winner and Premiership championship and what-not? Isn’t there more than one championship a team can win in a given year?

Our bowl system is what it is. It’s not perfect, but it’s the system in place right now.

If I put $10 up and offered the Dallas Cowboys and the Chicago Bears to play for it since they missed the NFL playoffs and called it the Rob H. Championship, it would still be a championship, regardless of how meaningless it would be.

If you want to have a race to the bottom and de-value the meaning of the word “championship” to that extent, be my guest. But you’re not exactly advancing the notion that winning a bowl game is more important than winning any other game.

In any case, it’s interesting to me that so many of you are so uptight about my renaming the bowls. A good indication that I’m on the right track.

I’m done with this topic. Must get some work done!

Jim|
January 3, 2013 at 10:49 am |

Speaking of bowl sponsorship naming, does anybody know the first instance of the sponsor’s name appearing in the bowl name or the first instance of the sponsor being the bowl’s name, such as the Polian’s Weed Eater Bowl?

kdf|
January 3, 2013 at 11:04 am |

I’m not uptight. I’m pointing out that your political agenda is obfuscating the stated purpose of your website. That’s feedback.

Pushback could indicate any number of things, FYI.

Also, I recall Phil (I think it was Phil, anyway) stirring up a similar shit-storm and trying to end it by stating that “politics has no place on Uni Watch” which is interesting, considering that Paul is now saying that he’s being aggressive-aggressive about pushing his particular progressive/anti-capitalist worldview (which I’m sure wasn’t lost on any half-sentient being in the first place considering how preachy, hectoring and overbearing it is). And now it looks like the fact that it doesn’t play as well outside of Brooklyn as in is mere confirmation of his cultural superiority. well, huzzah to him.

Jim, I was thinking of that a few days ago, and these are just guesses, but I think the first named sponsored bowl was the “Sunkist Fiesta Bowl” and the first entirely corporate bowl game name was the “Blockbuster Bowl” — but again, just my best guesses, and I’m sure others may chime in with better researched answers.

I’m pointing out that your political agenda is obfuscating the stated purpose of your website.

Maybe — just maybe — I have a better idea of my web site’s purpose than you do.

And here it is: The purpose is to make people think. That’s the only “political agenda.” Apparently it’s working.

kdf|
January 3, 2013 at 12:17 pm |

“Maybe — just maybe — I have a better idea of my web site’s purpose than you do.”

I was under the impression the purpose of the site was The Obsessive Study of Athletics Aesthetics. Sorry for not reading into that the elitist socio-political subtext you so clearly intended.

You seem to be taking the fact that people are finding your methods disagreeable as proof that you’re in the right. You’ve patted yourself on the back for as much several times this morning.

Btw, my only purpose for commenting is to offer *you* some things to think about. You don’t appear to have, and your condescending tone in response has only confirmed my impressions regarding your approach and your opinions of your readership.

“No, I’m not saying that my readers are irrelevant. I’m saying that a reader declaring, “I come here for [x], period” is irrelevant. And it is.”

This, restated, is: “My readers are not irrelevant. Their thoughts are. *I* want to make *them* think; any attempt at the reverse will be met with contempt.”

What I said I came here for what is the clearly, unambiguously stated on the top line of your website. I offered feedback on how you were going about doing it and I did so with respect to you and your opinions regarding our clear political disagreements. You responded with belligerent self-congratulation. This, apparently, is your idea of “making people think.” Good for you, comrade.

“My readers are not irrelevant. Their thoughts are. *I* want to make *them* think; any attempt at the reverse will be met with contempt.”

No, you’re once again misstating my position. A well-constructed critique is always welcome here. But saying, “I come here for [x], period” is not a critique. It’s a mini-tantrum couched in a demand. But you don’t get to demand what this site is about. That’s why such demands are irrelevant.

As for the “comrade” insult, that’s the last pathetic gasp of someone who knows he’s in over his head. Wake up, Kevin: There’s more capitalist enterprise in my pinkie toenail clippings than the average cubicle prole will have in his entire life. I make a living by creating something and selling it on the open market — the essence of entrepreneurial capitalism. So if you’re going to sling insults at me, at least make them vaguely appropriate to the situation.

kdf|
January 3, 2013 at 1:16 pm |

Paul, if you are going to distill what I’ve said about how the stated content of this site is presented, and the related influence of your other agendas as “a mini-tantrum couched in a demand” then clearly you are not in any sort of place to be taking that kind of feedback. You have a way of presenting bowl games that I think is way over the top and distracting and goes so far as to get in the way of the information you are trying to convey. In fact I would go so far as to say that it gets in the way of thinking about Uni issues because I would have to decode whatever the hell you were referring to in order to follow up on it myself.

Not until this last response did you restate your position that my so-called demand is what is irrelevant. Prior to that you said that a reader saying why they came here was irrelevant. There’s a difference. When you say you don’t care why I or anybody else come here that’s one thing (and that’s how I interpreted your words). When you say that you read my comment as a demand –which was not my intent nor was it implied in the text; it was a clear statement of two related opinions: the appearance and utility of the bowl-renaming practice and why I come here — then that changes the meaning of the discussion.

As for “Comrade,” I may have been glib, but to suggest that it’s an indicator that I’m “in way over [my] head” is ludicrous. I’ve often thought — though never said here — that your anti-corporate stance and your personal entrepreneurship — which I will freely acknowledge — are in some ways at odds. This is not unique to you by any stretch, but rather speaks to the differences in our worldviews. I was making a point about how what you are communicating is coming across to one reader. Ignoring that message and saying what you have, instead, said to myself and others seems to support my position on all of this well.

Despite where we are now, all this was honestly meant to be helpful. I thought I had made it abundantly clear that I respect your right say what you want, how you want in this or any other space, without regard to how I would do it or any suggestions/”demands”/critiques I might make. Clearly it is not helpful. if this has caused you any disquiet then I sincerely apologize.

I agree Mr. Lukas. Only one bowl game matters…The BCS Championship game. All the other games are Glorified Marketing tools. Even my beloved Cotton Bowl. The 1-AA, D-II and D-III are the true National Championship football games.

Go BearKats…….Eat Em Up!!!!!!!!!!

kdf|
January 3, 2013 at 1:50 pm |

For the record Paul sent me a very nice contextualizing email this morning…which I got just now. D’oh! As I said to him in my response to that, I wish he had provided that here as it might have avoided some…unpleasantness. At least we can all agree that pajama pants need to stay in the bedroom, amiright?

Glen|
January 3, 2013 at 1:55 pm |

And here it is: The purpose is to make people think.

The only thinking being done here is by people thinking that you are coming off as an elitist douche.

So, I guess you win.

Arr Scott|
January 3, 2013 at 2:00 pm |

Paul is now saying that he’s being aggressive-aggressive about pushing his particular progressive/anti-capitalist worldview

Lines like this make me laugh in despair at the decadence of American politics. Paul’s stance on this, as with so many issues, is founded on traditionalism and an insistence that established community values and practices take precedence over the purely material considerations of the marketplace. Which is to say, Paul’s arguments are fundamentally conservative. In the classical Burkean sense. Paul is not a radical pseudo-Marxian materialist, so he gets labeled as some kind of pinko hipster by those who confuse pseudo-Marxism with conservatism. But on this issue, Paul is arguing the morally and politically conservative case.

No, I’m not saying that my readers are irrelevant. I’m saying that a reader declaring, “I come here for [x], period” is irrelevant. And it is.

As for whether the site would exist without readers, it most certainly would. Would it be different? Certainly. Worse? Maybe, maybe not. But it would still exist, because I enjoy producing it, which is the only thing that drives it.

Uni Watch is a personal creative enterprise that I engage in because I enjoy it. It’s not subject to the laws of supply and demand except as they pertain to me — I am the supply and I am the demand. If other people like the site, that’s great; if not, that’s fine too.

Think harder.

Cort|
January 3, 2013 at 8:18 am |

I rarely follow college football. I couldn’t care less about bowl games or BCS. I look at the name replacement thing as a challenge: I read the description, make a guess as to what corporate sponsor is being unmentioned, then click on the photo link to check my answer. It’s challenging! And fun!

Dumb Guy|
January 3, 2013 at 8:39 am |

+1

Dumb Guy|
January 3, 2013 at 8:41 am |

It reminds me of when advertisers a verbotten from saying “Super Bowl” and have to use cute-isms like “Big Game” or “Pro Foootball Cahampionship Game”.

This is similar to a comment I made a couple of weeks ago re: Blogger Generically Renaming Things (see, I can do it too! :) )

As Cort describes, replacing “Allstate Sugar Bowl” with “Insurance Bowl”, causes readers like us to think of the bowl game Paul is referring to. This active thought leads to more brand recognition for the sponsor than if Paul had simply said “Sugar Bowl” or “yesterday’s bowl game in New Orleans”.

Personally, I think it is counter-productive, but I don’t lose a lot of sleep over the deal.

Rob S|
January 3, 2013 at 9:12 am |

The number of bowl games is TOO DAMN HIGH!

Full. Playoff. System. If I-AA, II and III are doing it, I-A could. They choose not to because of the bowls, because of money.

Good post(s), kdf. I, too, love uniform-centric commentary and news, but the attitude of the site’s author borders on egregious arrogance from time to time. That always surprises me in this kind on environment, because, as you say, if you’re not interested in contrary thought, it’s probably best to just write in a diary and leave it at that. All to often on blogs, message boards and the like, homogenized thought is the only kind of thought that’s acceptable. Telling people to “think harder” because they disagree is an arrogant cop-out.

I feel compelled to jump into this. Gents, “athletics aesthetics” includes the aesthetics of sports nomenclature. Hence on one level – the de gustibus level – there’s no meaningful distinction between saying “I love stripes on football socks” and “I hate corporate names on stadiums and bowl games.” I like the look and sound of X and I dislike the look and sound of Y.

The distinction arises, it seems to me, when the aesthetic mingles with the civic. For some of us here, there’s a big deep line between the question of whether a particular uniform looks good in the eye of the beholder and whether that same uniform exemplifies a positive or negative development in popular culture. But for others of us, that big deep line is crossed (and obliterated) a thousand times a day. Some may call that “politicizing.” Others say that the wholesale intrusion of advertising into the public realm – ads on school buses, parks named after the highest bidder, and, yes, the names of not-terribly-important post-season football games – represent a doleful trend, not only in a civic sense, but in an aesthetic sense as well. Is the BF Goodrich Rain Tire Bowl legal? Sure. But is the BF Goodrich Rain Tire Bowl a better name than the erstwhile Sassafras Bowl? No way. Not to me. And not to me on a strictly civic basis and on a strictly aesthetic basis. But my aesthetics are also interwoven with my civics when it comes to determining what I like and don’t like, what I support and what I mock, and how I react to the likes and dislikes of people, like Paul, who share this broader perspective. That’s why I like this site. Paul’s ambit is wide. Good.

Robby Z|
January 3, 2013 at 1:55 pm |

I think we’r in the middle of two arguments here.
One is Paul’s renaming of bowl games as a sort of protestation. As has been pointed out above, yeah, we get it. What’s more, I doubt there’s anyone that reads this board that likes corporate-named bowl games. That’s why I “still call it the Orange Bowl”. I also “still call it the Rose Bowl” and “still call it the Citrus Bowl”. Sadly, there are now games that were born as corporate entities, so there isn’t even the option to revert to the proper name, but again, we get it and we agree with it. Let’s move on, as Paul likes to say.

The other issue is anyone’s ability to voice a contrary opinion. On a board with open comments, the implication is that ideas can be shared and discussion is encouraged. Saying, “Why you come here is not particularly relevant. Why I come here is what’s relevant” is horribly insulting. If feedback/opinions/comments that aren’t vulgar or otherwise inappropriate aren’t given respect, close off the commenting ability and stop pretending this is some kind of community.

Tom V.|
January 3, 2013 at 3:26 pm |

The only reason I don’t care for Paul calling them names nobody knows is because instead of knowing exactly what he is talking about I have to figure out which of the thirty five bowls is the gas station bowl. Secondly, it is unfortunate Paul is a bit stubborn and doesn’t care to change his blog to the better by taking readers advice. I mean, he did it with the mexican necktie thing a year ago but seemed like it was one of the few. I love Paul’s content, I wish there was another place we could read it online without the messenger.

walter|
January 3, 2013 at 4:57 pm |

I’m not going to presume to tell Paul how to write his entries: it’s his sweat and toil. What’s regrettable is the sacrificing of clarity for the sake of repeating some oft-heard points of view.

Hodges14|
January 3, 2013 at 8:02 am |

Way to cave MLB, way to cave. On a more positive note, happy birthday Phil.

Kyle|
January 3, 2013 at 9:19 am |

Agreed. I wish they had not given in as I think it is their right to go with whatever logo they want. Know one is forcing them to buy it. I also think that logo is far less “offensive” than Clevelands Chief Wahoo and I dont think they plan on getting rid of that cap anytime soon. I just dont see the name Braves or the logo being offensive in anyway. The Redskins and Indians I understand but this one I simply cant agree with.

Maybe I will start protesting Notre Dame for using a Leprechaun to represent the Irish. Thats a sterotype, right? A fighting irishmen with a temper?

Please, not again with the bogus Notre Dame comparison, which isn’t even vaguely comparable. (And let’s not go down that argumentative road, please — just let it be.)

And yes, of course it is the Braves’ right to use whatever logo they choose. Nobody is saying otherwise. But choices have consequences. In this case, the choice of using that logo brought on the consequence of a big public backlash. The Braves can choose to respond to that (or not) however they choose, too.

hodges14|
January 3, 2013 at 10:53 am |

Also, a completely unnecessary backlash that was started by you even though it has been determined that American Indians are not offended by the logo.

SYoshonis|
January 3, 2013 at 3:25 pm |

How has it been determined that “American Indians” have a single opinion on anything, let alone that American pro sports logos aren’t offensive?

hodges14|
January 3, 2013 at 4:45 pm |

You don’t see any American Indians filing defamation lawsuits now, do you?

SYoshonis|
January 3, 2013 at 11:18 pm |

You must be a lawyer. Nobody else would consider a defamation suit a typical result of being offended.

Davis J|
January 3, 2013 at 9:46 am |

I sure hope I can buy one of the Braves beautiful bp caps before other people decide that I can’t make that decision for myself.

Has it occurred to you that every single uniform you’ve ever seen went thru numerous design revisions, and that each version that got scrapped along the way was an example of “other people decid[ing] that [you] can’t make that decision for [your]self”?

Davis J|
January 3, 2013 at 10:09 am |

Yes. Yes, it has. And I hope I can buy one before that decision is reached.

hodges14|
January 3, 2013 at 10:51 am |

Paul, I can understand the logo being removed if the American Indian population was up in arms over the logo, but honestly, white men and women who have probably no American Indian lineage? Have you ever thought of asking the American Indian population what they think?

Here’s a similar example: When Houston was awarded the soccer franchise we now know as the Dynamo, their original name was Houston 1836. The name was redacted after opposition from the HISPANIC population. Granted, this is Texas, and Texas is a red state, but honestly, did white men outside of Texas oppose to the name? No. Also, yes, I am familiar with the fact that soccer isn’t as popular in America as it is around the world.

Here’s another hypothetical example. Suppose a Big 4 expansion team opted to call themselves the Porkchops because of their close ties to the meat market, but the name and logo are deemed offensive to Hispanics (porkchop is a slightly derogatory euphemism for Hispanics), even though the Hispanic population decides that name and logo aren’t offensive at all. Would you oppose the name and logo as well?

Don’t call something offensive if the offended party does not feel that it is offensive. Let sleeping dogs lie.

There was an AHL team called the Iowa Chops who partnered with the meat processors in Iowa and wore a pig as a logo. They were not found offensive because they didn’t slap an image of a Hispanic person on the logo. Slap an image of a sombreroed Mexican male on that jersey with the name “Chops”, and you’ll have thousands angered.

Stop arguing two different points. You’re lost on both.

Cort|
January 3, 2013 at 11:56 am |

The most annoying part of the Braves’ logo for me is that the guy doesn’t even look Native American. He looks like Don Draper in a mohawk and war paint. It reminds me of that movie from the Fifties, where Sal Mineo was cast as White Bull, Indian guide to General Custer. Sal Mineo, complete with Brooklyn patois.

I am not convinced that all native nicknames and logos should be eliminated. I kind of like some of them. This one, though, this one is just bad.

hodges14|
January 3, 2013 at 4:38 pm |

Teebz, there is a very discernible difference between using the image of one person and the image of an entire race. Can you imagine if baseballs had feelings? How would they feel about the Mets logo? The Rockies logo? The Giants logo? Basically, any logo with a baseball in it?

And from what I read in the comments on Lukas’ ESPN piece as well as a few other online critiques of the logo, it’s not a matter of money, it’s a matter of history and pride. The American Indian posters who were in favor (which was the majority, in fact I didn’t see any negative feedback from American Indian posters,) said that they like the logo because being called a Brave is one of the highest honors in their society, and they felt that there was nothing wrong with the logo.

hodges14|
January 3, 2013 at 4:43 pm |

Oh, here’s where I got my porkchop example basis:

On December 1, 2007, the IronPigs selected “PorkChop” as the name of their mascot from 7,300 submitted names. On December 2, 2007, the name was changed to Ferrous, derived from the chemical name for iron, because of complaints from the local Puerto Rican population, who alleged that “Pork Chop” was a racist term, despite the name being submitted by a young girl who lived in the Lehigh Valley area. The current mascots for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs are Ferrous and FeFe. Ferrous wears the number 26, which is the atomic number for iron. FeFe is named after the abbreviation for iron, Fe.

The Ironpig mascot is a pig, not a caricature of a Puerto Rican.

MEMAL|
January 3, 2013 at 8:07 am |

Happy birthday Phil!

I always dig these sidebars into bowling lanes, am gonna have to add today’s post to my all time favorites. There’s supposed to be some killer lanes in the basement of the Pittsburgh Athletic Club in Oakland that I’ve tried a few times to get down into and bowl on, has anyone ever had the chance?

Mark in Shiga|
January 3, 2013 at 8:08 am |

I love those imaginary NL Central soccer jerseys; each one of them would look totally natural if one of those teams sent their players to participate in a soccer exhibition somewhere. But I’d like them so much more if they didn’t have player names, MLB logos, and (most importantly) corporate logos twice the size of the actual team’s logo on the chests.

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 8:56 am |

the STL Cardinals one looks like a redneck tuxedo

Arr Scott|
January 3, 2013 at 10:21 am |

Exactly. Which is why it’s so perfect. Redneck tuxedo: an apter summation of that team’s identity I’ve never read. (Not an insult! I come from the edges of traditional Cardinals territory. Those are *my* rednecks wearing Cards pride as a psychic cumberbund while slopping the hogs.)

My only wish is that actual MLS would look anywhere near as good as these concepts.

When I was growing up in Akron, my local bowling alley was Riviera Lanes (long time home of the PBA Tournament of Champions!) It had the multicolored star panels like that last alley photo.

ed

Beau|
January 3, 2013 at 6:28 pm |

Still open as AMF riviera lanes.

Mark in Shiga|
January 3, 2013 at 8:42 am |

Paul, if you ever get the chance to go to North Korea, make sure you visit Pyongyang’s “Gold Lane”. It has computerized scoring, but the computer is vintage 1980s, as is the decor and just about everything else there. It was an experience!

We had to bowl the first three frames with chipped and scratched house balls before (not wanting to be embarrassed in front of their esteemed capitlaist guests) they lent us some really nice balls. I recovered to bowl a personal-best 153 — not much to brag about, but I hadn’t been bowling since I was a kid!

BurghFan|
January 3, 2013 at 2:40 pm |

Mark,

I didn’t expect to read about bowling in North Korea here. Thanks for this.

Happy Birthday, Phil!
I really liked Florida’s look last night. Something about it just seemed old school to me. It’s sad to say this, but I commend Stanford, Wisconsin, Florida State, Louisville and Florida for not coming up with garish new uniforms for their big BCS bowls, and going with their standard looks. I assume I can say the same for Kansas State, Notre Dame and Alabama, but as for Oregon? Who knows.

I really enjoyed those Bowling Alley photos too! Very cool looking! I grew up near Toledo, OH and there was one seriously old school bowling alley (Secor Lanes) where the ball (for the ball return) came back on TOP of the alley, and they also had one red pin per batch. If it happened to be the head pin and you got a strike, I think you won a prize. To top it all off, the whole place was done up in that same exact shade of pea green as in the Elks photo above, with a “50’s department store” pink on the wall over the pins. It was like stepping back into the 1950’s. I wonder if it’s still there? The last time I was there was probably mid 90’s, and it was still like that then. Paul, you would’ve TOTALLY dug that place!

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 8:57 am |

i think it was the color and the way the fabric of the pants looked made the UF uniforms have an old timey feel to them

Alan|
January 3, 2013 at 9:01 am |

Through the magic of Google, it looks like Secor Lanes is still going strong-and still old school!

JimWa|
January 3, 2013 at 8:52 am |

I love that the bowling bumpers at the Elks Lodge appear to be nothing more than the black flexible draining piping that I use to divert water underground away from my house.

Adam N|
January 3, 2013 at 8:55 am |

The Brewers and Cardinals soccer jerseys are fantastic. I typically have no desire to own a soccer jersey, but those would be great. Would love to see a MN Twin’s done in the Killebrew style. Hmmm. . . who to make the sponsor? (Target? Best Buy? 3M/Scotch? Schell’s?)

Ryan|
January 3, 2013 at 9:55 am |

Considering the Twinkies play at Target Field…

Shane|
January 3, 2013 at 12:38 pm |

Bolton Wanderers play at Reebok Stadium, wear Adidas, and are sponsored by a betting website.

Matt|
January 3, 2013 at 11:33 pm |

That’s a pretty recent development though. For much of the past 20 years, Bolton played at Reebok Stadium, wore Reebok kits, and was sponsored by Reebok.

And for what it’s worth, Reebok is a subsidiary of Adidas.

Adam N|
January 3, 2013 at 1:48 pm |

That was too easy. I was thinking Schells to give it more of an old time feel. If Dayton’s were still around. . .

Love that book. Just to clarify, it proves that JFK had nothing to do with the fedora’s demise. The fedora was already in steep decline before JFK’s inauguration.

Relevant to us here: The fedora’s demise paved the way for the ascension of the baseball cap in non-baseball settings. You can decide for yourself whether that qualifies as a good thing or a bad thing.

Jim|
January 3, 2013 at 9:17 am |

Right. It proves that JFK was just following already established fashion trends. (And, interestingly, I believe he was the last president to wear a top hat at his inauguration.)

Adam N|
January 3, 2013 at 9:24 am |

New Year’s resolution: buy more argyle socks

Paul: I personally believe the baseball cap and fedora should enjoy equal but separate appreciation.

I’m with you, Adam. I love cargo shorts, blue jeans and pinstripes trousers; there’s a time and place for each.

DenverGregg|
January 3, 2013 at 10:48 am |

When I had a different job and residence and could use mass transit, a fedora was functional for walking to the bus stop, waiting for the bus, etc. Now that I have a long car commute, it isn’t functional to wear a fedora, in fact it becomes a hassle given the lack of headroom in most cars. As a result, I don’t wear my fedoras as much as I’d like. The age of the decline of such hats correlates pretty strongly with the rise of folks using cars as a primary means of transportation.

I still wear argyles often.

timdub70|
January 3, 2013 at 10:41 pm |

Up until the 1950s, Chrysler had a president who believed that all the cars that they make must have enough headroom to accomodate hat-wearers.

Turtle12|
January 3, 2013 at 2:14 pm |

I tend to wear argyles Sunday through Thursday. It is rare that I break from the trend. I do wear the occasional pair of ‘rups on Fridays, as well.

Mark in Shiga|
January 4, 2013 at 6:01 am |

I love fedoras and here in Japan, where I live, they’re making a comeback, as is argyle.

American fashion was so much better before about 1970.

JamesP.|
January 3, 2013 at 8:58 am |

1) Happy Birthday, Phil!

2) Paul, that is a beauty of a book! I love old bowling alleys. My father-in-law is an old league bowler and his home lanes out on Long Island recently updated and now looks like most other updated bowling alleys. Hearing him describe how the place used to look makes me wish I could have bowled one game before the update. Lanes where the wood was worn into natural groves thanks to the years of hooked balls being thrown.

Also, Paul, every time you talk about bowling I think of the little lanes under that bar where the Uni-meetup was held when you came out here to StL. They were 100yrs+ old, right?

Andrew|
January 3, 2013 at 9:15 am |

I never realized how similar the Miller logo and the Brewers’ wordmarks are until I saw the Miller logo used for the Brewers’ reimagined soccer uniform.

Reminds me of the oldest pair of league-sanctioned lanes in America, which are in the basement of Holler House in Milwaukee:http://cdn.lightgall...

Bernard|
January 3, 2013 at 9:49 am |

Those look infinitely more inviting (though, full disclosure – I’m a sucker for wood paneling and Miller High Life). I tried unsuccessfully to organize a trip to Holler House when my fantasy football league held our draft in Milwaukee a couple summers ago. It’s amazing what you CAN’T get done when you start drinking bourbon too early in the day.

The Indian headshot on the BP cap is a bad move. Glad the Braves are considering switching it up. It might be the ugliest, most awkward looking cap in the history of sports.

I’d like to see them keep it and see how many caps they sell.

Seriously, who wants to walk around town with a screaming Indian on their head ?

Joey Harvey|
January 3, 2013 at 10:24 am |

Indians fans.

(maybe not a “screaming” Indian, but he’s got a big ole smile with big ole teeth)

(and the Braves Indian is not screaming; he’s laughing)

Davis J|
January 3, 2013 at 10:29 am |

I want to buy one. And I sent MLB an email telling them that.

Arr Scott|
January 3, 2013 at 10:35 am |

That’s the thing. Even putting aside the political and moral question of whether it’s right to use imagery that disrespects a group of one’s fellow American citizens, that is just one butt-ugly logo. It’s a piece of outdated clip art like the horrible illos on those jokey-caption ecards (http://www.someecard...). It doesn’t belong anywhere near a big-league baseball team’s uniform on aesthetics grounds alone!

tom|
January 3, 2013 at 1:28 pm |

i dont have a problem with it as a patch. the logo doesnt totally offend me. i just think it’s an odd logo and would look ridiculous on a MLB license hat

George N.|
January 3, 2013 at 9:57 am |

Just a follow-up to a Uni-Watch story that Paul addressed a while back; apparently Steve Spagnuolo is an insufferable asshole toward EVERYONE, not just equipment managers:

Wow, I’m impressed with the about-face in number management from the Red Sox, who (after many decades of traditionalism) had been putting some garbage on people’s backs in the past five to ten years.

This year the roster has only one player above 50 (Hanrahan’s 52, which isn’t too awful) and while the manager and two coaches have high numbers (53, 57, and 58), you won’t be seeing their backs all that often. The Mets do this too — giving 51 to 55 to coaches — and it frees up lots of good numbers for players whose digits you’re looking at.

Good job, Boston!

Joey Harvey|
January 3, 2013 at 10:14 am |

I don’t understand how the Braves are catching so much flack for this cap, while the Indians have had a Native American head on their hat for years and no one’s storming the team with torches and pitchforks…

I get that there has been plenty of discussion around it, and plenty of people don’t like the Indians’ Chief Wahoo hat, but if they can wear an Indian face on their head, the Braves should be allowed to too.

if they can wear an Indian face on their head, the Braves should be allowed to too.

The Braves ARE “allowed to.”

Joey Harvey|
January 3, 2013 at 10:21 am |

I know they’re allowed by the league. But they should be “allowed” (in other words, not so negatively criticized that it requires them to change their plans) by the fans, too.

It’s just my opinion, of course. But it’s a logo that’s a part of their team history, and if Native Americans (especially around the Georgia area) themselves don’t have a problem with it, then I don’t have a problem with it.

It’s a conversation that’s been beat to death, however, so I’m fine just leaving it at that.

(in other words, not so negatively criticized that it requires them to change their plans)

Nobody is “requiring” them to do anything. You keep using terms that are imperatives, but there’s no imperative here. It’s all about choice.

Johnny O|
January 3, 2013 at 10:39 am |

The BCS Bowl games provide the winners of the game with championship shirts… no big deal… happens all the time. This year, the official gear has “pun themed” shirts. Stanford was “Tree-mendous”, FSU was “Florida State-ment”, and Louisville was “You’ve been Carded”. Kind of cool, kind of lame at the same time.

I am really interested in the loser’s shirts though. I want to see all the puns Nike came up with. Anybody have a clue where I could see Wisconsin, NIU, and Florida’s shirts? I know they tend to keep “loser’s gear” tucked away and send them off to other countries, but I think it would be cool to see what Nike came up with for every school.

Jerry|
January 3, 2013 at 10:44 am |

Wisconsin’s was probably, “Badger-ed”

Phil Hecken|
January 3, 2013 at 10:45 am |

“Anybody have a clue where I could see Wisconsin, NIU, and Florida’s shirts?”

~~~

Haiti

Shane|
January 3, 2013 at 10:51 am |

Pretty sure during pre-game I saw a Niked up “Geaux Gators” t-shirt in the crowd. Ugh.

Phil Hecken|
January 3, 2013 at 11:02 am |

Maybe. I saw a “Geaux Gators” sign (not t-shirt) during an audience pan last night. But it’s entirely possible that would have been the shirt slogan as well.

SaveFarris|
January 3, 2013 at 2:13 pm |

Were I a betting man, I’d guess the Floria shirt would have said “Chomped”.

Joey Harvey|
January 3, 2013 at 10:58 am |

Chris Creamer’s Sports Logo board often puts up posts of “phantom” championship gear. Maybe he’ll make a post of all the Bowl Game loser gear.

I have no idea how he gets access to the artwork, either.

Johnny O|
January 3, 2013 at 11:40 am |

Thanks for the input. I didn’t know Creamer’s site often did that. I will have to try his message boards.

Call me crazy, but the phantom championship gear has ALWAYS interested me. Even when I was very young. I guess I was a uni-watcher before I even knew it.

Especially with these “pun shirts, I am really interested in what Nike came up with for the other teams.

Adam N|
January 3, 2013 at 1:58 pm |

I was always interested in it as well. As painful as the reminder is, I would love to own a Vikings 1998 NFC Championship shirt.

I understand they ship them off to a poverty stricken country, but wouldn’t they be better off auctioning off a bunch of them and using the money raised to provide even more services to the poor? Maybe even the poor living in the shadows of the stadiums/arenas?

Robby Z|
January 3, 2013 at 3:52 pm |

Somewhere, to someone(s, the Buffalo Bills are the greatest NFL team of all time.

Shane|
January 3, 2013 at 10:45 am |

Paul, if you ever want your own 4 lane alley, the old Turners Hall in the town next to me is for sale.

UT players for the last few years, they have had ribbons on their helmets for cancer. The players were given a choice of which color they wanted to represent. The ribbon was referred to in this article from texassports.com http://www.texasspor...

“As the players run through the tunnel on to the field Saturday night, three players will carry out a pink, a yellow, and a purple flag in honor of cancer awareness. Pink symbolizes support for breast cancer, yellow for testicular cancer, and purple for overall cancer awareness.

Each player will choose a color ribbon – either pink, yellow, or purple – to display on the back of his helmet for the game, and all players will wear pink wristbands for breast cancer awareness. ”

They have keep the ribbons on for the remainder of the season. My guess is Jaxon just keep his on.

TH|
January 3, 2013 at 11:26 am |

If the Braves’ laughing-savage-silly brave goes by the wayside, I have one simple comment to Paul.
Thank you.

RMB|
January 3, 2013 at 11:30 am |

Those Adidas unis for the All-American Bowl are intriguing. Are those simply sublimated patterns printed on the jerseys, or are they some sort of grip pattern like we’ve become accustomed to seeing on Rugby jerseys in recent years? (example: http://www.shoprugby... ) I’d have to assume it’s the former, since wearing a jersey that provides more grip would be a disadvantage in American football, devoid as it is of scrums. There’s also a third possibility, that it’s an overlay that makes the jerseys slicker and more difficult to grip…

I don’t know when this logo was first introduced, but it was being used as late as this 1961 album cover. It would shortly be replaced by the “Holstein Heisman” (and don’t believe the date on that one).

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 12:08 pm |

new Bama uniforms for the “insert paul’s aggressively-aggressive tired shtick here” national title game

Ugh. That just came up on my Twitter feed. I’m not a big fan of matte helmets, so I’m not sure how I feel about this. One criticism I’ve often had of Nike is the numbers on Bama’s jerseys looking more “cardinal”, while the glossy helmets trend towards maroon. A consistent crimson all around would make me very happy. Perhaps these changes will fix that.

I have never referred to the BCS Title Game as anything other than the BCS Title Game.

The shtick at this point is yours, not mine. Let’s please move on.

Phil Hecken|
January 3, 2013 at 1:05 pm |

Granted, it’s the Bleacher Report, but here’s a quote from that article:

To Nike’s credit, it doesn’t try to change anything about the Crimson Tide look.

Really? This is what it’s come down to. Praising the uni manufacturer for not changing the team’s look? God forbid.

Robby Z|
January 3, 2013 at 1:37 pm |

FWIW, Bleacher Report is THE lowest common denominator in sports “journalism”. Suggesting that anything from that site is the proper definition of “what it’s come down to” is giving it waaaaaaay more credit than it deserves.

Phil Hecken|
January 3, 2013 at 2:42 pm |

Agreed. And to call it “journalism,” even with quote marks, is also giving it waaaaaaay more credit that it deserves ;). Hence why I couched my original comment with the ‘granted’ qualifier.

My point, regardless of where it was stated, that NO ONE should be giving any props to a uni manufacturer for not screwing with a uniform.

Even one as lowly as BR.

Will S|
January 3, 2013 at 12:11 pm |

My brother worked in a bowling alley (as a pin boy) for a little while; I think when he was in high school. Pin setting was done by a machine but I guess he fixed things when the machine missed a pin or did something else wrong; plus he had other tasks there.
Bowling alley looks mostly like it did back then except the scoring is computerized now and you don’t need to fill out sheets with pencil and paper. Now ,like then, the bowling alley has mostly 5 pin lanes with a handful of ten pin lanes.
The green paint in the Elks lodge photo look like the same shade of paint that was in the rec. room in the basement of my old house up until last year.

Phil P|
January 3, 2013 at 12:13 pm |

I’m late to the party regarding the corporate sponsorship bowl thing, but the way I see it, Paul’s position on corporate douchebaggery of bowl games is a perfectly valid item to highlight and is in line with things like uniform sponsorship and logo creep that are more “traditionally” part of the Uni-watch content, essentially the influx of corporate influence on a sporting culture that many of us view as civic symbols. The same allegiance to the almighty dollar brings branding into so many aspects of sports, so I think critique of all aspects of sports branding, and not just uniforms, is perfectly fair game for Paul to discuss here. Plus it’s his site, not everything has to be about uniforms, it’s just the primary content here.

Tony C.|
January 3, 2013 at 12:34 pm |

i get his stance on the sponsorship “issue”, like i said up above, it just grows tiresome, it’s the same washed up joke over and over again. if you don’t like the corporate name, don’t use it. call it the Alamo, Fiesta, Orange or whatever bowl. His take is that he’s using this type of naming to get us to “think”. and as a reader, we have thought about it, we get it, so no move on. he left the comments open for feedback, and a lot of people’s feedback has been expressing their distaste for it.

Phil P|
January 3, 2013 at 12:43 pm |

Although his take may be “old” to you or me, it could be new to someone just visiting the site for the first time. We may have thought about it but even if one or two people notice this as a new thing and start to think, that’s a good thing. You can never point out an absurdity too much, I think.

Phil P|
January 3, 2013 at 12:48 pm |

I mean, look at this http://www.trbimg.co... The branding is bigger than the name of the game! If this doesn’t deserve to be mocked on a daily basis during bowl season, then I don’t know what else to say. Looking at the logo, it is really tortilla chip bowl

Will S|
January 3, 2013 at 12:21 pm |

For those in interested in the Vanishing Alleys book but live outside the U.S., you just have to enter your postal code in the address section (which comes up before the payment part) and the shipping cost will come up. $11.50 shipping came up for me (for my area of Canada).

Finally some decent Army All-American Bowl uniforms. These are kids. They want to wear something cool. Now that Russell is out as a sponsor, more kids may pick this game to play in than the Under Armour game. Better SWAG…Better Players. Ask Oregon.

Harvey Lee|
January 3, 2013 at 12:28 pm |

There is an old school bowling alley right across the street from the NC State campus in Raleigh:

Nice pictures of the bowling alleys. They filmed Kingpin in my neck of the woods. Paul, the next time you’re in the Burgh you need to have a UniWatch party at the Beaver Valley Bowl in Rochester. They have a full-service bar, only 20 minutes from the airport, only has about ten lanes (been a few years since I’ve gone there so I don’t remember the exact number), and it is where they filmed the scene in Kingpin where Woody Harrelson’s character Roy Munson lost his hand in the movie.

As for the Braves BP cap, I was gonna say something last week but held out because you requested not to for that day, but I don’t see anything wrong with it, or any Native American imagery being used in sports. (Except for Chief Wahoo.) What I feel is offensive is when teams do stuff like the Tomahawk Chop or make statements like “scalp the Cowboys”, n’at. At the end of the day, the people whose opinion should really matter are Native Americans, and consistently over the years over 90% have voiced approval on the mascots.

Phil Hecken|
January 3, 2013 at 2:45 pm |

“I don’t see anything wrong with it, or any Native American imagery being used in sports. (Except for Chief Wahoo.)”

~~~

So the logo on the Washington football club, and “Chief Nakahoma” are fine and dandy, but “Chief Wahoo” is wrong.

Gotcha.

Todd|
January 3, 2013 at 2:53 pm |

I didn’t know if you were still doing the whole “Washington football club” thing anymore after seeing you type out “Hail to the Redskins” in the Collectors Corner yesterday. It was a little surprising.

Phil Hecken|
January 3, 2013 at 3:03 pm |

I’m not quite sure to what you’re referring — but if it’s “Collector’s Corner,” that’s Brinke’s writing, not mine.

Todd|
January 3, 2013 at 3:25 pm |

Guess I meant that in a collective “you”, but I understand that there are different individuals that contribute to the site.

Florida looked awesome in the photos. Maybe Coach Muschamp will let them go full orange hats, shirts and britches some day.

tom|
January 3, 2013 at 3:04 pm |

trudat

Sven|
January 3, 2013 at 2:42 pm |

Dang, i was looking forward to the classic Braves cap.

Komet17|
January 3, 2013 at 3:01 pm |

I miss Jim Vilk…

The Orange Goblin|
January 3, 2013 at 3:21 pm |

I really did enjoy the ESPN article on Alabama and Notre Dame uniforms. I am surprised there was no mention of Notre Dame seriously considering adding teal to their uniforms in the early 2000s to boost merchandise sales though.

Fascinating note today on the Alabama helmet used on the network set – I will certainly keep my eyes open for the switch should it be necessary.

The reveal trailer for MLB 13 the Show for PlayStation 3 was released today. There is a brief frame (you have to pause!) that reveals there will be a uniform editor feature built into the game for the first time in this series. Wonder if you can create custom logos too?

Kyle|
January 3, 2013 at 4:39 pm |

Wow, just checking in for the first time today, and seriously, what a shit-storm. Guys, last time I checked this was a free site, and Paul shares his much more insight and content than most pubs and even TV channels I readily pay for. His site. His content. For us to take or leave. We’re all here day after day because 9 time out of 10 we love it. No reason to stoop to name-calling when you don’t. All for a good debate, but damn…

James A|
January 3, 2013 at 5:34 pm |

For the hockey brains on this site, I have a question. I know that NCAA players have received penalties for playing in games/tournaments that also included Major Junior players (Which the NCAA views as paid/professional players), yet there are college players skating in the World Junior Championships alongside and against peers from the Canadian Hockey League. Is there some rationale for this tourney getting a pass or is just some usual NCAA hypocrisy because this is such a high profile tourney (Particularly in North America)?

TA|
January 3, 2013 at 5:54 pm |

The NCAA has a general exemption for events organized by the IOC-affiliated sport governing bodies, which would include the IIHF. It’s the same as NCAA athletes competing against or with pros in the Olympics.

James A|
January 3, 2013 at 6:27 pm |

Grazie!

KW Chris|
January 3, 2013 at 9:59 pm |

I would also imagine that it would have something to do with the fact that the players, professional or otherwise, are not getting paid for playing in the tournament.

>>Word I’m hearing through the grapevine is that last week’s ESPN column on MLB’s new BP caps generated so much controversy and backlash<<

Do you have any proof that it was your article that caused the controversy? Or that the Braves or MLB are actually hearing voices of "backlash" from fans, retailers, or leaders from any Native American community? I'm generally pretty skeptical when a journalist/commentator touts his own work as influential without any back up.

TA|
January 3, 2013 at 6:37 pm |

Lukas is the one who broke the story. There wouldn’t be any backlash if nobody knew about it.

I’m not “touting” anything, not taking credit for anything. I’m simply stating a fact: The cap designs were not yet scheduled to be released and nobody (including you) would have seen them yet if I hadn’t published them last week after acquiring them from an inside source.

But I only wrote two sentences about the Braves’ cap, and my strongest language was the word “disappointing.” The backlash came mainly from other media outlets that picked up on my story (CNN, Yahoo, NBC Sports, etc.) and wrote about the Braves’ cap at much greater length than I did.

Kidney Jess|
January 3, 2013 at 6:44 pm |

Love the bowling alley pics. Some of the local lanes here in central Wisconsin look just like that! Thanks for the link to the book too, might pick it up for my mother, who is a bowling freak!

I like uniforms, that’s why I come here.

Coleman|
January 3, 2013 at 7:17 pm |

I thought Oregon was going with the yellow helmets tonight, but the commentators desk shows the dark green one.

I think the Ducks look very nice tonight. Even wearing actual school colors. Shiny pants would have made it even better. K-State looks classically great as always.

Too bad Florida lost as those unis were sweet.

Wheels|
January 3, 2013 at 10:52 pm |

This isn’t ‘Nam, Smokey, this is bowling. There are rules

Charlie|
January 3, 2013 at 11:03 pm |

My worlds just collided! The author of Vanishing Alleys is also the director of a fantastic summer camp I work at. It’s a great little underdog of a camp and he just finished another book, which features the photos he has taken over the last 6 years working there. It’s a long shot, but if any of you are interested here’s a linkhttp://www.kevin-hon...

All the proceeds go to our camp!

mike 2|
January 4, 2013 at 12:00 am |

Great post today! Reminds me of one of my favourite old (five-pin) lanes in Winnipeg, the Billy Mosienko lanes on north Main: